The Man With The Plan
by HandheldIbanez
Summary: Naruto and Sasuke, facing off for the girl! Or are they?
1. Chapter 1

_Today was the day_. Naruto thought. _The day I finally put my plan into action.  
_Today was actually Wednesday, Team 7's 3rd day in the Land of the Waves.  
Why does that matter? Well, it doesn't really, but tension was high among the team members. _Especially_ Naruto and Sasuke.

Naruto walked slowly back to Tazuna's house, deep in thought about his next course of action. _I'm thinking I should try and compete with him for Sakura. That might get him out of his shell. I mean, what gives? He trains so hard to be better than me, but he won't even compete with me for Sakura. Well, that's gonna change soon. Believe it!_

Naruto put on his trademark grin and came charging like an Uzumaki through the front door of Tazuna's household."I'm here!"He cried out loudly."Hope you saved me something good to eat!"Unfortunately for him, his eyes were closed. Or he would have seen an angry Sakura coming to kick his ass."Naruuutooo!"She yelled angrily, eyes white with her inner fury._ Uh oh…_Naruto thought, before being punched back through the door he came in from. _Ow…why does Sakura have to hit so hard?!_ Naruto thought to himself, rubbing the lump that was forming on his head(Courtesy of the nearest tree.)

"Hey! Why'd ya hit me, Sakura?!"Naruto whined, crying fake little tears.  
"Because, you idiot! You need to be more quiet!"She yelled into his face._ Look who's talking._ Sasuke thought to himself. He was just sitting quietly at the dining room table, chin resting on his clasped hands, and eyes staring straight ahead in thought.  
Well, except for the occasional flicker towards Sakura's bent form. Even more specifically, her ass that was looking quite attractive to Sasuke at the moment.

Would he ever admit that to another human soul? Nope.  
Is he admitting it to himself now? Regrettably.  
So here's the deal. Sasuke was just now finding out about puberty, so he didn't exactly know why he thought the annoying girl was so very attractive. He had never thought that before. So why now? If he wasn't in denial, he would've asked Kakashi. But Kakashi was too "busy" reading Makeout Paradise. And by "busy", I mean he was watching the events unfold before his single eye while pretending to read.

Oh yeah, he knew exactly what Sasuke was looking at, and he knew why, too.  
In fact, the same feeling had come over him around the same age with his team mate.  
He wasn't going to go looking for trouble, so he stayed out of it. For now.

_What is happening to me? Is it some weird effect that shinobi have on one another? No it can't be. I don't feel like this around Naruto. Then maybe it's an effect of the Sharingan eye? Possibly. I have observed Sakura with it. But I don't think that is it, either.  
Maybe I'm just imagining things. But there's no way I'm imagining _that. Sasuke thought, as Sakura leaned down over Naruto, hands firmly planted on hips, scolding him for ruining their peaceful moment. No, no, not the scolding. The way her kunoichi pants stretched over her butt and thighs. And the way it made the shape look so much more shapey (Probably not a word, but Sasuke doesn't care.)

He felt a tingling sensation in his stomach at the sight, and a small bit of drool leaked out of the corner of his mouth. He sighed in frustration, and angrily ran his fingers through his hair."I'm going to go train. Don't wait up for me."And with that, he disappeared out the open door.  
Kakashi chuckled to himself, starting to read now that his entertainment was gone.  
_That kid is gonna kill himself if he doesn't figure it out. Something as foreign as attraction isn't good for Sasuke's mental well-being. Not after Itachi took all the positive emotion from his life. But then again…Sakura might just be the perfect ninja for the job._ Kakashi smirked under his face mask, and continued reading his very dirty book.

Sasuke walked through the forest, hands shoved in his pockets, and lips turned down in his permanent frown. _What is it about Sakura that is affecting me so deeply? I keep feeling this burning in my face when she's around, and she's constantly stuck in my head.  
It's so frustrating! I can't train with her distracting me like that, and Naruto just acts annoying. The idiot._

Sasuke arrived at the training ground that Team 7 was using to learn how to control chakra. Well, more like a bunch of trees than a training ground, but whatever!  
Sasuke looked up at the looming evergreens, the sunset illuminating their towering structures and casting shadows over the flat expanse of ground that Sasuke stood alone in.

_Well, I might as well try and train to get my mind off of the annoying woman._ Sasuke thought with just a hint of bitterness. Because we all know Sasuke is just as much of a one-track mind shinobi as Naruto. Just, not in the harmlessly-dense way. So, as you would guess, Sasuke was in a bit of a sour mood at not being able to focus on his hate for Itachi. _Which was a first, by the way._ He was too focused on his growing acknowledgment of Sakura to feel his lust for revenge.

Poor Sasuke. He's feeling lust in _other ways_.

"Grr…"Sasuke voiced his opinion at the kunai-raped tree he stared down.  
No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't seem to get any semblance of control over his chakra flow. At least, not like Sakura could. _AH! Now I'm _complimenting _her?!  
I must have gone mad…  
But she _did _get it down the first time. All I can seem to do is use speed and momentum to carry myself up the tree. Even your typical physics nerd could figure that crap out!  
Maybe instead of listening in on Naruto's failed attempts to get Sakura's secret, I should just go and ask her myself._

"NO! Fuck that!"He yelled out in answer to his "outrageous" theory at a better way of training."There is NO WAY I am asking _Sakura _for help!"Sasuke scoffed and punched the tree, causing a few scratches to criss-cross his already scarred knuckles.  
"Maybe…there's another way I can get the answer out of her…"

*Que the somewhat evil laughter. Or not, because he hasn't planned anything yet. Unlike Sakura, Sasuke needs a minute to start the inner dialogue._ This should be good._

_Sasuke's Inner Self-_

_**I will trick that pink-haired she-goddess into thinking I am simply playing a game! And she will fall right into my arms ~ I mean trap!**_

Back to Naruto and Sakura,

"Maybe you should annoy Kakashi-sensei with your loud behavior, and leave Sasuke and I to-"Sakura turned around with a smug grin, only to have it fall off her girly face.  
_Where's Sasuke?!WTF?!_

_Fast-Forward to dinner…_

"But Kakashi-Sensei! I think it would be better for the mission if you taught us that new jutsu you mentioned!"Naruto said to the copycat-ninja.  
"No can do, Naruto," Kakashi said with a shake of his head."You guys still haven't mastered chakra control yet, and that was the first thing I taught you. Before I teach you anything new, you have to master your chakra control."Naruto huffed and sat down in his seat, arms crossed in defeat. _Well, mock defeat._ Naruto and Kakashi had a plan.  
Their plan was to get Sasuke and Sakura to train together.  
A small glance was shared between student and sensei, but was gone as quickly as it came."Now that business is taken care of, let's move on to the next order of operations."Kakashi said to his three students."Since Sakura seems to have grasped the concept of chakra control, she is exempt from the extra "training". Instead, you, Sakura, will be Tazuna's guard throughout the day. Always stay by his side and protect him. That shouldn't be a problem considering he'll be working on the bridge most of the day."Sakura nodded at Kakashi's order. The other two glanced at each other and quickly looked away with a huff."Now as for you two…"Kakashi said with a hidden smirk.  
"Naruto, you'll be training with me until you can grasp the concept of what chakra is, and how you control it. And Sasuke, you'll be training with Sakura, because you don't need the extra help."Naruto could be heard making a fake scene over being called less than Sasuke, and Sakura was fangirling over the wonderful turn of events.

"Now don't look _too _happy, Sasuke. You and Sakura are to focus on training, so I don't want to see you two kissing behind a tree, alright?"Kakashi grinned behind his mask, and tried not to laugh at the looks of embarrassment on Sasuke's and Sakura's faces.  
Their faces turned a deep shade of red, and they glanced away what was almost a "caught red-handed" look._ Almost._

Naruto laughed loudly at the two of them, holding his sides in humorous turmoil.  
"Yeah, like that would ever happen! Sasuke probably doesn't even like girls, and Sakura is all mine!"He continued to laugh until he was silenced by the demon that is Sakura's Inner Self and Sasuke's fist of rage."You idiot!"They screamed in unison, not realizing they were doing this together. Naruto held his head in pain.

"Ow! What was that for?!"Naruto whined like a child."It's because you're an idiot, Naruto!  
I'm not yours, and I know that Sasuke likes girls. So there!'Sakura said with a humph, crossing her arms and sticking out her tongue at the orange-clad ninja."Nevermind."Sakura started with a sigh."I'm not anyone's, and I'm pretty sure Sasuke doesn't care either way about girls or boys. Anyway, I'm tired, so I'm going to bed."Sakura walked away in a tired depression.

Kakashi didn't need his sharingan eye to tell that Sakura was getting tired of trying to get Sasuke's attention._ Even though she already has his undivided attention._  
Kakashi looked over to Naruto and met his eyes in a silent go ahead.

Sasuke looked after Sakura with a blank stare, but inside he was sad she was going already."So Sasuke,"Naruto started with a grin."You know since you don't even like girls, you won't mind if I take Sakura out tomorrow for a date."Naruto kept grinning mischievously until he saw the fire in the Uchiha boys eyes as he turned to him.  
"I would mind. So keep your hands off of her."He sent one last glare towards the Jinchiruki and followed after Sakura towards his and Naruto's room.

"And for your information,"Sasuke said with a hint of a smile creeping up on his face.  
"I do like girls."And with that, he walked up the stairs and slammed the door.


	2. Chapter 2

Hello, and welcome back!  
This is HandheldIbanez your super awesome host!:D  
Here is the second chapter to The Man With The Plan.

I won't take up too much of your time,  
I just want to say that I'll be talking all about my favorite pairings for Naruto, and a few other things, at the end of the chapter.  
Anyway, enjoy!:P

Chapter 2

Sasuke Uchiha lay on his bed staring at the ceiling of his and Naruto's shared room.  
The blonde spaz was passed out and spread out across the bed, snoring quietly.

_The loser has no idea what it's like to feel this way. I bet he doesn't even really like Sakura; he's just doing it to piss me off. I don't even know what to call this feeling.  
Kakashi never told me about it and father didn't either. And…Itachi failed to mention anything involving Kairi. Well, fuck Itachi anyway._

Sasuke swung his legs over the top part of the bunk that he shared with Naruto and rubbed the side of his head._  
God is this becoming annoying. That annoying woman is becoming something I can't even define. She gets on my nerves almost as much as Naruto does, but…in a different way._

Sasuke was feeling affection in such a weird way. Well, a normal way, but odd for a shinobi like Sasuke.  
It started shortly before he left Konoha. Team 7 was training hard with Kakashi, and all was normal. But Sasuke noticed Sakura's form-fitting kunoichi pants a little more than usual. The way they stretched and constricted in all the right places to show off Sakura's assets.

He was confused at first (still is), but he decided to check it out and pass it off as en after-effect of something he ate.  
Maybe one of the annoying girls slipped some sort of poison into his food.

So he went off on his own, much to the disappointment of Sakura.  
He went off, jumping all over the village, looking for the other kunoichi.  
He found Tenten with Neji, both doubled over and out of breath.  
He decided to make his observations quick because of the Hyuga.

So, squinting his eyes in concentration, he stood on a tree branch near the training ground.  
He noticed Tenten's looks, but they didn't make him feel any different when he observed her.  
So he moved on.

_Well, so far I'm in the clear._  
Hopping up on a nearby branch, he stopped to observe.

Down below was none other than Hinata Hyuga.  
She was practicing her Gentle Fist, all alone.  
Letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding, he continued his evaluation.  
_There isn't anything different about her either. I commend her for training so hard. Hold on…what is Naruto doing here?_

Sasuke watched in confusion as Naruto ran up to the young Hyuga and gave her a big grin.  
Being the ever observant one, Sasuke noticed the blush that Hinata received with the arrival of the orange-clad shinobi. She would press her index fingers together and look to the side shyly. Her behavior reminded him of how he felt around Sakura, he was just a master over his emotions.

_Maybe it would be worth my time to stick around here a bit longer. I may find more answers by observing the Hyuga girl._

And with that thought, Sasuke settled into a comfortable position on the tree branch and continued to watch the two in the training ground.

"Hn, the loser is actually talking to the girl."Sasuke said to himself with a smirk.  
He had figured it out a long time ago. The Hyuga girl had a deep crush on Naruto since they were very little, and Naruto was just starting to return the feelings.

He waited a couple more minutes until the couple went off to eat lunch at Ichiraku's.  
_This will take some time, I might as well get some training done until she gets back._

With a huff, he hopped down from the tall tree and walked over to the scratched-to-shit wooden dummy.  
Pulling a shuriken and two kunai from his hip pouch, Sasuke worked on a move he called, '_The Chainsaw'._  
He would take some string, tie it to the end of each kunai and trap the shuriken in the middle.  
Using a simple wind jutsu, he would make the proper hand signs and blow a gust of wind on the shuriken, causing it to spin very fast.  
Then, he would throw the kunai onto two trees and watch as the shuriken would fly off the middle of the string and cut the head off of the wooden dummy.

Sure, it sounds complicated and/or useless, but really it was more effective than just throwing a shuriken.  
The string would create friction with the shuriken, acting like a ripcord.

Use your imagination to figure out the rest.  
He could only do a very basic attack with it, but soon enough he will have it mastered so that he could decimate a foe with over 10 shuriken.

Or just make a very dangerous yo-yo.

Whipping the shuriken back to his hand, Sasuke turned his head slightly to see the Hyuga girl approaching.

He stood up from his crouching stance and pocketed the shuriken.  
"Hinata, it's good to see you. Can we talk?"Sasuke said pleasantly, deciding to show a different side with Hinata.

"S-sure , Sasuke. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be training with the rest of T-team 7?"She said, confused at seeing the genin.

"Actually, I needed to talk to you about something."He said with a sigh, rubbing the back of his head and getting quieter with every word.

This was different for Hinata. She wasn't used to people talking to her, much less asking for her help. _Especially _the class prodigy. It just wasn't like Sasuke at all.

"Talk to me? I-I'll try my best to help you, Sasuke."She said after a minute or so.

_Whew! At least I have someone to talk to about this. I'm pretty sure that Hinata can help me, and that she can keep a secret. Maybe I should be nice more often?_

Sasuke let out another sigh before continuing.  
"You know Sakura, right?"He said, a strain apparent in his voice.

"Yeah, I know Sakura. We're good friends. Why?"  
This whole thing is odd enough for Hinata, but Sasuke talking about Sakura?  
One of his most devoted fangirls? This was shocking.

"Well,I…um, that is I-I-"Hearing Sasuke stutter was a big surprise, and Hinata was almost 1000% positive about what he was trying to convey.  
"That is, I think I like Sakura…"He finally finished with difficulty."I've been thinking about her a lot lately and I figured out that she is the only girl in the village that makes me feel this way."With a defeated sigh of a man who has admitted the worst, he sat down against the wooden dummy and hung his head.

Hinata felt much more comfortable with Sasuke now that he had admitted that he liked Sakura.  
"Well, why don't you just tell her how you feel?"She offered as a suggestion, sitting down next to him.

He whipped his head up with such speed, he startled Hinata.  
"Are you crazy?!She'd kill me if I told her that!"Sasuke exclaimed, looking close to losing it."I mean, sure, she might be happy for a moment, but I don't think she'll believe me when I can't even really explain these feelings myself. Not to mention the girls that'll become homicidal towards her…"

Hinata just gave him a sad smile, as if to say,'_You know what you have to do.'_

Sasuke got up, and waved his thanks to Hinata before running off to find Sakura.

But because this story wouldn't make any sense if Sasuke actually completed his mission to find Sakura, he has to lose a part of his memory.  
Why? Because I said so.

Walking down the street with a thoughtful look, Sasuke was disengaged from reality, and therefore, couldn't see the wagon in front of him.  
_What do I say? Will she even believe me if I told her outright? Hn, I'll figure it out.  
I _am _a Uchiha after all._

Famous last words.  
Caught mid-though, Sasuke ran straight into the wagon. Hands still stuck in his pockets and his eyes widening in surprise, he was too startled to respond.

And fell right on his face.  
_Ouch. That hurt._ Sasuke thought, before scrambling to his feet and disappearing in a flash to avoid the embarrassment.

Stopping to rest on top of a random house, Sasuke let out a breath that he had been holding ever since his clumsy fall.  
_That hurt more than I thought._ He thought to himself, scratching his head to get rid of the throbbing in his head.

_What was I doing anyway? And why did I run into a wagon?_

Shrugging his shoulders in dismissal, he continued jumping from rooftop to rooftop on his way to Team 7's training ground.

_**Back to Naruto-**_

"Like I was saying Sakura, ramen is a gift from God and Teuchi and Ayame are angels that deliver the delicious bounty to all who come."Naruto explained with a scholarly look.  
Sakura let out a sigh."Naruto, that doesn't even make any sense. Now shut up, I see Sasuke coming this way."Sakura replied, changing her reprimanding frown into a girly smile.

"Sasuke! Welcome back!"Sakura greeted him as he touched down in front of them.

"Hn."Sasuke replied, turning his head and leaning against a tree.

_Oh man, Sasuke still isn't paying me any attention!_ Sakura thought, her smile turning back into a frown.

Before she could try to start up another conversation, Kakashi appeared in front of them, his _Makeout Paradise _book still in his hands.  
"Yo."He said cooly, throwing up a peace sign.

"You're late again, Kakashi-sensei!"Naruto and Sakura yelled at the same time, fingers pointed at their teacher accusingly.

"Well, you see, I'm afraid I got lost on the path of life. You wouldn't believe the traffic."  
The statement was so outrageous, that all the genin could do was stare at their teacher.

"Dude, what are you talking about!"Naruto yelled, obviously annoyed at his teachers lame excuses."We don't even have cars in this anime!"

Yeah, like that would make sense.  
In response, Kakashi just shrugged and flipped in the page.

With a sigh, Kakashi put down his book and gave the three genin his full attention.  
"Alright, listen up you three, I just got our orders. We are going to be escorting a bridge builder named Tazuna to the Land of Waves. Understand?"  
"I'm ready!"Naruto responded, drowning out Sasuke's 'Hn', and Sakura's 'Hell yeah!'.

"Alrighty then, let's move out team."Kakashi said."Meet me at the gate to the village in exactly one hour."And with that, he formed the hand signs and flashed away.

Alright!  
Now, how did you like it?  
If you liked it, please leave a review:D  
And if you disliked it, review anyway!

On to the rest of the show.  
Because you see, I was meaning to write about my favorite pairings in my first story, but it totally slipped my mind(:  
I'll be doing the same for the next SoulEater fanfic I write, and whatever other random things I'll write about.

As you have probably already guessed, I lean more towards NaruHina.  
I'm kind of a weirdo, in that I feel like the characters should stay loyal to the ones they love in the stories.  
It's part of my own personal code.

I definitely do not discriminate, though.  
That's also part of my personal code(:  
Now, what else...  
I used to do ShikaIno before I realized just how good of a pair Shikamaru and Temari make.  
And I kind of like the idea of Ino the popular girl, going for Choji, the fat kidXD  
Besides, Choji grows up to be pretty awesome.

Next pairing...  
Definitely Sasuke and Sakura. It just seems so right.

Lee deserves a chance, but I think he needs someone who could channel his crazy energy, where as, Sakura would just get tired of it and breakup with him.  
He needs someone like Ayame, from Ichiraku.

And Sakura should get the man of her dreams, right?  
I mean, she waits so long for him, and always keeps hope in mind.  
That's dedication. Or obsession:P  
Now, Gaara is a bit trickier.  
I honestly think that every girl in the show would be good for him, yet, none of them really fit him just right.  
I've read a few Gaara and Sakura stories, and they're actually really good.  
It does fit well.  
But I still don't have a definite opinion on who he would be with.  
NEXT!

Kiba...  
Yeah, he's tougher because I see him liking Sakura, and having a brother-sister thing with Hinata.  
But as he grows older, I'm sure he gets over his crush and falls in love with someone else.  
And as weird as it seems, the best pairing I've seen for Kiba is with Hanabi.  
It's only like a four year difference, right?  
That's totally exceptable by Japanese standards. And American ones, too:D

And it is totally poetic justiceXD

Alright, next.

Oh man, Shino!  
He is the best one so far!:D  
Only because the only pairing I've seen him in was with Kiba's sisterXD  
It worked out well, and I think it totally works for Shino.

Now, call me crazy, but I enjoy reading ficlets about the softer side of the usually regal and cold older brother.  
Like, Itachi for example.  
Or Byakuya Kutchiki from Bleach.

Itachi works well with canon characters, but I think a well developed OC is perfect for him.  
It provides a good backstory for him, and maybe a method for his madness(I personally think Itachi is the shit, and he's totally a good guy in disguise.)

Now, on to the final pairing...  
My personal favorite...  
Naruto and Hinata!:D

Why I like this pairing so much, is mainly, because it shows a much more mature and romantic side to Naruto.  
And because it was a long time coming(:  
Hinata deserves to have Naruto more than anyone else.

There's more to it, but I've already talked your ears off.  
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the story and look forward to more updates!


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